Why Is Doing Nothing So Difficult?

A seeker expresses frustration at being unable to simply sit at home without becoming bored. Why is it so difficult to simply do nothing? Sadhguru compares this dilemma with those who find themselves “digging the course” in a game of golf.

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Oct 11, 2017

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Q: Sometimes I have a free day, and I plan to just sit at home. But then I really get bored. Why does this happen? If I want to just sit, why is it so difficult?

Sadhguru: If you are alone and getting bored, obviously you are in bad company. By the end of the day, if you are feeling miserable, you are in super-bad company. The fundamental question is: “What is my problem? I have all my limbs intact, I can see, I can hear, I can smell, I can taste, what’s my problem?” But that is the big problem. That, you will know only if you sit alone. When there are people around you, you find excuses. If you are with someone, it is easy to say, “This guy is horrible, so I’m irritated. She’s not okay, that’s not okay, this is not okay.” But when you sit alone and the problem still exists, now you know what the source of the problem is.

Digging the Course

It is like in golf. A lot of people eulogize the game today – that it involves so much and it is not like other games – they are taking it to heaven. Many people think it is the most difficult, impossible game because when they try to hit the ball, they dig up the course. So they think it requires so much concentration and focus.

You are just supposed to sit, not climb a mountain, sing a song or solve a great problem. That’s meditation – nothing; simply sit.

But if you look at any other game you play, the ball comes at you at different velocities, different angles, different spins, you have to judge it in a split second and act. Here, the ball is just sitting there! You have all the time in the world. You can think, you can stand, you can adjust and re-adjust yourself – it sits right there! Even then, many people dig the course. Sitting alone is the same thing. You are just supposed to sit, not climb a mountain, sing a song or solve a great problem. That’s meditation – nothing; simply sit. That’s the easiest thing, isn’t it? But just see how many problems you have simply sitting by yourself!

Everything looks unnecessarily complicated because we have never paid attention to that which you call “myself”. There is no complication in this. This is a beautiful machine. It is nice when it is quiet, and it is nice when it makes noise – it can do both well if you keep it well. If you have not kept it well, when it is supposed to be quiet, it will make noise, and when it is supposed to make noise, nothing will come out.

No Excuse for an Old Fool

You must sit alone – it is very important. The company of the divine is available only to those who do not seek company. If you have something to share, that’s different but if you are seeking company, the divine thinks “Okay, he’s seeking somebody else’s company. Why am I needed?”

I realized this very early – unless you sit alone, you know nothing. In company, you can hide so many things. When you sit alone, you have to stand the test of your own intelligence, which is severe. You cannot get away from that. It is better you are put under the severest possible knife at the earliest possible time in your life. Otherwise, you will grow up into an old fool. It is all right to be a young fool, but you should not be an old fool. A young fool is tolerable, but there is no excuse for an old fool.

Editor’s Note: Find more of Sadhguru’s insights in the book “Of Mystics and Mistakes.” Download the preview chapter or purchase the ebook at Isha Downloads.